Donate

Christmas

Empty alleyway and two blue doors

Christmas is canceled in Bethlehem

Global Security

Every year, thousands of tourists and Christian pilgrims flock to Bethlehem, the biblical birthplace of Jesus, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. But this year, Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem and across the Middle East will be dramatically toned down.

People walk down a normally bustling shopping street in the center of Amsterdam

With Christmas in the balance, nations eye UK omicron surge

COVID-19
In this March 26, 2020, file photo, a boy wears a mask as a preventative measure against the spread of the coronavirus, as he navigates floodwaters mixed with garbage following heavy rains, in the Kibera area of Nairobi, Kenya.

‘Connecting with God by caring for the environment’: Franciscan monk in Kenya shares Christmas message

The Big Fix
A small boat heads out into the sea ice in western Greenland.

‘Human Intelligence’: a holiday tale

Arts, Culture & Media
Several people in coats stand around a giant button

Why are so few people born on Christmas Day, New Year’s and other holidays?

A woman poses for a photo surrounded by red Christmas ornaments in Bangkok, Thailand.

Photos: The world celebrates Christmas

Religion

What does Christmas look like around the world? Here’s a peek from Thailand, Pakistan, Iraq, Australia, China and several other countries.

A book is sitting in torn Christmas paper. The title of the book is "Christmas Eve at the Mellops" and a photo caption underneath says "We opened one. We couldn't resist."

How a neighbor bearing gifts turned into a family’s ‘most unexpectedly magical week’

Before Ken Watson passed away, he bought 14 Christmas gifts for his neighbor’s 2-year-old daughter.

Three girls peer over the pew in church in China.

China’s new anti-Christmas campaign leaves citizens celebrating in secret

Religion

Christmas is approaching but instead of feeling joyful, many in mainland China have expressed frustration over China’s ideological campaign against Christmas as a Western festival.

An exhibition of Soviet ornaments and toys at the Museum of Russian Icons in Clinton, Massachusetts

Cosmonauts and corncobs: A peek at some Soviet-era holiday ornaments

Cosmonauts and corncobs on a Christmas tree? Scratch that … on a New Year’s Day tree! That’s what you’d find on a holiday tree if you were in the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

Luke Macfarlane and Candace Cameron Bure in “A Shoe Addict’s Christmas.”

Guilty Pleasure: The anthropological whiteness of Hallmark Channel Christmas movies

Guilty Pleasures

Why a black Muslim prison reform activist became an aficionado of the all-white world of Hallmark Christmas movies.

Latest Episode

Pop Songs, Alpendub, Willie